Beach Landings

[Coniglius]

My Great-Uncle Jimmy landed at Normandy with the 9th Inf. Div. His transport was hit out in the approaches and he had to wade through the final 30 yards or so. Luckily he was very short (5' 6") so he didn't present a large target!!!

I've done several training landings with Marines as part of a Beach Master unit. The tough part comes when you're getting yourself properly aligned, and then gun it to run up on the beach before dropping the ramp. It's those 60-90 seconds of eternity that get the adrenaline pumping!!! Much more fun to come screaming in on an LCAC, although they tend to bounce on the chop rather than plow through the surf...